Fly Agaric vs Queen sago

Amanita muscaria compared with Cycas circinalis

Key Differences

Fly Agaric is Least Concern while Queen sago is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Fly Agaric	Queen sago
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Tracheophyta
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Cycadopsida (Cycadopsida)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Cycadales (Cycadales)
Family	Agaricaceae (Agarics)	Cycadaceae
Genus	Amanita (Amanitas)	Cycas
Species	Amanita muscaria	Cycas circinalis

Conservation Status

Fly Agaric

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

Queen sago

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Fly Agaric	Queen sago
Diet	Decomposer	—
Average Lifespan	1 years	—
Average Length	20 cm	—
Average Weight	100 g	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Fly Agaric

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (New Zealand), and South America (Brazil, Chile, Colombia).

Queen sago

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 5 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Oceanian realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Marshall Islands, Portugal, South Africa, Taiwan, and United States. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Fly Agaric

Among the most iconic and recognizable fungi on Earth, fly agaric mushrooms display striking red caps with white flecked warts across boreal forests of the Northern Hemisphere. Despite their fairy-tale appearance, they contain potent psychoactive compounds including muscimol and ibotenic acid and are moderately toxic. They form critical mycorrhizal symbioses with birch, pine, and spruce trees, exchanging mineral nutrients for carbon and playing essential roles in boreal forest nutrient cycling.